Advertising has a lot of influence, which is why it's important that it's a positive one.
Diageo Chief Marketing Officer Julie Bramham spoke at Spikes Asia about the need to overcome stereotypes in advertising and how the portrayal of gender in particular needs to more progressive.
The power to normalise gender equality
Julie cited a Harvard study that showed three quarters of people, both men and women, have a gender bias. “And these biases lead us stereotypes. The danger inherently is that we may not even realize we're falling into the trap at times,” she added.
“As advertisers we have the power to normalise gender equality and use our marketing spend as a cause for good."
Creating a framework for diverse advertising
Diageo are paving the way for positive representation in advertising. Julie referenced Diageo's involvement in the UN unstereotype alliance and the company's creation of a framework that helps Diageo marketers and agencies create more diverse and inclusive marketing.
Recognising the need for progress
But Julie also recognized that there's still progress to be made. During the talk, she used work from brands like McDowells, Bailey’s, Smirnoff, Guinness and Johnnie Walker to show where they could have improved their representation and how the framework was making a difference.
Finally, she encouraged other companies to use progressive gender portrayal in advertising by offering statistics that showed the positive business impact of diversity and guidelines for agencies to follow to make an important step towards positive representation.
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Disclosure: Where Women Work researches and publishes insightful evidence about how its paid member organizations support women's equality.